The Food Dollar

In 1999 consumers spent $618 billion for food. 80% ($498 billion) of this amount covered the transporting, processing, and distributing of foods that originated on U.S. farms, while the remaining 20 percent ($121 billion) represents the gross return paid to farmers.

Source: USDA Agriculture Factbook 2001/02,
http://www.usda.gov/factbook/